Top Tier sports films who among you don't love them. From Sylvester Stallone's The 6-Part classic Rocky Saga to Ryan Coogler's Creed spin-off, Cinderella Man, The Hurricane, and Antoine Fuqua's Southpaw you name them they all stand the test o time and leave with the same room silencing inspiring feel.
Joining in line with his debut boxing drama is British Actor and director Louis Findlay.
The Dartford born big-screen filler whose roles have stacked up over the years starring in a wide range of motion pictures including The Mummy Reborn, The Rizen, RM Moses' 5 Miles South, Monet Morgan's Law drama series Brothers in Suits and more. The born natural performer who won the Best Actor award at the Los Angeles Actor Awards for his role in the 2017 short film Days To Come as well as the film going on to win awards in Europe continues to WIN.
It's always a big step when making an independent film and Louis Findlay sure brought the vim with this one. The British cinema talent steps behind the camera introducing his boxing drama No Mercy . Telling a story that has it all comedy wit, emotive drama, motivational montages, the adrenaline rushed press conference match up all centred around the life of new, young boxing hopeful Reece Mercy. Already gaining high support and flowers from newspaper and media outlets such as Kent Online, Lost-Project, Daily Advent and Fauve.
With production from Oracle Picture House and Orange Car No Returns. tarring Sharon Lawrence, Peter Meyer, Gordon Round, Scott Wickes, Daniel Blake, Richie Lamb, Jamie Gold, Paris Froud, Marcus O'Brien, Andy Ramkissoon, Abraham Alalade and Dan Powsey. Louis Findlay takes you through the making of the boxing belter of a film.
1. Thanks for sharing more behind the movie. It’s an inspiring debut from you.
Could you share what the movie is about?
Louis: Ultimately, the film is a family drama about a broken family. Recce, is a young boxer who was raised by his father and hopes to follow in his footsteps as champ. But when his estranged mother appears on the scene, everything he thought he knew about his upbringing changes and he realizes his mother wasn’t the bad guy his father made her out to be.
2. That’s excellent, it’s a big deal and what a captivating and moving tribute it is. How do you feel about the journey of making this film? It did take a while to make. How were the pre-production stages?
Louis: Initially No Mercy started out as a 10-15 minute short but we had so much fun and Richie Lamb who plays Jack (a non actor) was so good we just took a leap of faith and decided to turn it into a feature randomly. In terms of pre – production, there wasn’t much planning if I’m honest, I hit the gym as much I could, I started boxing again, I already had my own equipment and some money saved up so it was just a case of casting it, sourcing locations and filming when we could. Over all it took 4 years.
3. What was your favourite part of the process, did you enjoy having flexibility as the film’s writer and actor and what could you say you learned from producing this independent film? Did you study any filmmakers that inspired your film?
Louis: My favourited part was filming with my mates – that simple. But I loved all of the training scenes, it was so fun. I also really enjoyed being behind the camera too and directing and I’m so glad everyone trusted me because I was scared shitless. I think I learned a lot and that I still have so much more to learn and I definitely need a bigger budget and industry professionals on bigger stuff next time. I wouldn’t say I studied any filmmakers but I wanted to do something different where you could believe these characters were real people and care about them. I saw a movie by David Ayer called End Of Watch which is about L.A Cops and shot like a documentary.
4. Well now we can’t just skip past a lot of the work you’ve done so far. You appeared in a lot of successful films and shorts. What would you say are your favourite TOP 5 films that you have been apart of?
Louis: I enjoyed working on a comedy called The Mummy Reborn, because I met a bunch of lovely actors who I still keep in contact with 4 years later. I got to work with director Dan Allen who I’ve been dying to work with since I started out and he was so cooI. He’s a director that really listens to his actors and asks if anyone has any ideas about a scene, he wants you to do your best work and really helps you get there. I hope we work together again in the future.
I also enjoyed working on Tom Dunham’s Bluff. He’s a really cool guy, knows exactly what he wants and gets exactly what he wants quickly with no messing around. I got to work with Nathan Hector again – we started out together back in the day and must’ve worked on about 4 projects together now. I also got to work with Scott Wickes who also appears in No Mercy. I had a blast working on a short by R.M Moses called 5 Miles South, he’s honestly the future of British film and TV.
5. Moving forward from your debut film project and more on the way. There may be many of the next generation of performers or even filmmakers even actors that are looking up to you. What wisdom can you share to encourage and enlightening them from your experience?
Louis: If you are passionate about something I think you’ll always find a way of making it happen. It might take 10 years, it might take longer but if it’s really what you want to do then it’ll happen. Focus on the journey, not the destination. Be nice to people (it goes a long way) listen well and be willing to learn. But most importantly make sure you have lots of fun along the way.
6. Finally, thank you so much for sharing more behind such a moving and echoing film and career so far. What’s next for you this year? Louis: Well I signed with a new agent at the start of the year and I finally feel like I’m being seen by the right people and auditioning for some great films/shows. I’ve got a short that I shot last summer that I'm editing and hope to have that completed soon. I’ve also been writing lots, I really enjoy writing and I’m hoping to shoot one of my new films later this year all being well. Other than that, Just enjoy spending time with the family and counting my blessings really. If you liked what you heard find out more and follow up on Louis Findlay online via Twitter and Instagram